


hell was the journey but it brought me heaven

by casuallysavingtheworld



Series: all along there was some invisible string tying you to me [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Din Djarin Needs a Hug, Fix-It of Sorts, Luke Skywalker Needs A Hug, M/M, Red String of Fate, Things are a bit different because of the strings, Touch-Starved Din Djarin, Touch-Starved Luke Skywalker, beta but it's not good so we die like stroomtroopers, stars canon and i have a bit of beef
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:28:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28909338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/casuallysavingtheworld/pseuds/casuallysavingtheworld
Summary: He hates that he can see the strings, something he realizes no one else around him can do, and Din hates them. His string wants to lead him away from the things he’s come to know, the life he wants to live. He’s trying to be brave, god damn it, and the string keeps pulling and tugging, trying to get him to follow it.(Din Djarin has a golden string attached to his finger, that floats into the sky, leading him somewhere. He's the only person he knows who can see them. He runs from it, hating that they exist, which leads him exactly where he's supposed to go.)
Relationships: Din Djarin & Finn & Luke Skywalker, Din Djarin & Grogu | Baby Yoda & Luke Skywalker, Din Djarin/Luke Skywalker
Series: all along there was some invisible string tying you to me [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2118132
Comments: 34
Kudos: 355





	hell was the journey but it brought me heaven

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So someone requested a golden string story but in Din's POV, so bada bing bada boom, this was born. So techincally this is part two of the series, but they don't have to be read in order, but there are some parallels in both stories!
> 
> A couple of things before I let you go, 1) DIN DJARIN'S LACK OF BACKSTORY GOT HANDS! 2) I had to manipulate somethings about what we vaguely know about the Children of The Watch, and fill in the blanks, so if things don't quite add up to canon, my bad. 3) I don't want to have to say this but, people can love something and still have complicated feelings about it. Just remember that!
> 
> I had a great time writing this, and I am so happy that people have been so kind about what I've been putting out into the world. I have a lot of inspiration from Din and Luke, but you guys are the ones who keep me coming back to write more, so thank you :D Please enjoy!

Din Djarin doesn’t have a string. He never asked why. There is already so much going on in the world, on his planet, that Din didn’t think it was important enough to ask why. His parents have a string that was connected, so he just assumes that all parents did, but none of that matters right now. 

A long boom went off as they ran, him in his father’s arms, his mother running next to them. Dirt rains from the sky as more loud noises come, and Din’s grip around his father’s neck tightens. He watches as people get shot down, murdered in front of him, by those droids. His people, strings getting cut off by the simple act of a blaster.

Why was this happening to them? What even is happening? Din jumps when he sees blaster fire, burying his head in his father’s neck, trying to keep the tears from falling. His family stops, placing him on the ground. His parents crowd around him as another blast goes off, trying to protect him the best they could. 

“Din, we love you so much.” His mother presses kisses onto his head, the three of them standing before the cellar doors. 

“We need you to stay here, you’ll be safe here,” His father says, pulling him close, both hugging him. 

They don’t usually hug him like this, tight with shaking hands, but Din lets them, he doesn’t ask questions, he listens. He’s good at that, listening. They kiss his cheeks, and his father places him down in the cellar, this is all happening so fast, he hasn’t said anything. His father gives him a look, lingering before shutting the cellar doors. Din reaches up to him. 

“Be brave, Din,” His father says, before he closes them off from each other. 

Din still doesn’t scream, doesn’t say a word. He just sits there, reaching, when a single golden thread appears, leading up into the sky. Like the ones his parents have. He tries not to think about it. A crack of light breaks through into the darkness that surrounds him now, and Din tries to be brave. The world shakes around him, dust and dirt falling into the cellar, Din just sits, listening to the screams, and the blaster fire. He tries to keep calm, but he’s only eight, what is he supposed to know? 

That’s when the droid blasts open the cellar doors, and Din sits there powerless, he’s a _kid_ , what else is he supposed to do? The droid aims, and Din clenches his eyes shut, waiting for pain. It never comes. 

What comes instead is heavy blast fire and a loud clunk, Din peers his eyes open, and sees them, the person in armor, reaching their hand out to Din, gesturing to him to come forward. 

“Come with me, I’ll keep you safe.” Their modulated voice rings with metallic timbre, and Din isn’t scared. 

Their string leads them away from here, Din sees it in the sky. His string leads away from here too, so Din takes their hand. The armored person lifts him out of the cellar, and picks him up. Glancing around, Din notices people who are wearing the same armor as his rescuer, and Din realizes this person is a warrior. The pair stand there for a moment, watching as others like the armored person take out droids in seconds, as they fly in on their jetpacks, and Din is in awe of his saviors. Someone gestures to the warrior he’s with, and they nod, taking him in their arms. Din immediately wraps his arms around the person’s neck, holding close to them, the person lifts their hand to Din’s head. Just like Din’s father does. He hopes the person is taking back to them, back to his parents. 

The warrior lifts off the ground, and together they float above it all. Din watches as other warriors destroy the droids, their metal bodies littered across the ground, right next to the bodies who wear the same color Din does, the once golden string between the two of them black as coal. Din squeezes his eyes shut, and waits to be reunited with his parents, his family. 

There are just some things you can’t think about.

* * *

Din doesn’t make it back to see if his parents are alive, but the Tribe takes him in, they protect him. They call him a foundling, telling him that’s what they call the children whose parents have all died. Din pushes all the thoughts about the day they rescued him to the back of his mind, except for the fact he hates droids with a passion and will never let one near him ever again, if he can help it. 

The warriors took him and the other children off world. They’re in a dark place now, they took him underground. There isn’t much light, not like he’s used too, but it’ll be okay, it has to be okay. They tell him they have to stay underground to protect themselves, from the outsiders, the ones who do not understand The Way. They say they’re raising him in the Fighting Corps. Din doesn’t really understand but he goes along with it, understanding that he’s never going to see his parents again. He likes the Mandalorians and the way they’ve protected him so far. 

“When you come of age, you can swear the creed, and you can join us, if you want,” The Mandalorian says, and Din nods. The warrior hands him his training helmet, and Din looks at it, the Mandalorian giving him some space to think. 

If his parents are really dead, then he has nothing to go back too. 

_Be brave, Din._

Din knows the only way forward, one that he’ll be safe in, protected and valued, if he can’t find his parents again, is the way with The Mandalorians. He looks down at his string, he doesn’t remember what they should lead to anymore. He knows he did once...maybe even recently. He doesn’t find comfort in the string, trying to lead him away from these people, the people who have kept him safe. He has nowhere to return to, so Din understands the path he’s deciding now. He decides to be brave. He slips the helmet on over his head. 

This is The Way.

* * *

Whichever god has cursed him, Din swears he’s gonna kill them. 

He hates that he can see the strings, something he realizes no one else around him can do, and Din hates them. His string wants to lead him away from the things he’s come to know, the life he wants to live. He’s trying to be brave, goddamnit, and the string keeps pulling and tugging, trying to get him to follow it. He sees so many different colors and lengths in the strings, the golds, the reds, and the silvers from so many different people, all the Mandalorians, all the foundlings. He doesn’t want to know what any of them mean, he doesn’t even want his. 

Din sits in his bunk, and it’s dark, the night-vision on his helmet shows him all the other sleeping Foundlings around him. He wonders if any of them wake up like he does, jolting awake with memories of people he knows he should remember, but there’s a missing piece there. Din hates the nightmare more than he hates droids. He’d even prefer those dreams he has of those eyes, those sky-blue eyes that are matched with sandy blond hair, and....a green laser? He tries to keep his gasps to a minimum, because Din would hate to wake any of them up, just because he can’t get his dumb nightmares under control. 

Din would hate to be a bother in such a way. 

In the early mornings, Din takes the knife he’s been hiding under his bed and tries to cut the string off, but it just flows right through it. Din wants to scream, wants to tell the god who cursed him to fuck off, tell them to leave him alone. He’s been through enough already, and his body aches day in and day out with the training he’s doing for the Fighting Corps. He’s going to swear to the creed, they tell him he’s done all he can at this point, and he’s coming of age soon. He’s turning thirteen soon. Din’s going to get his own helmet, soon. Soon, he’s going to get to paint his armor red, to honor his parents in more ways than one. Soon. He’s going to be a Mandalorian. He is a Mandalorian. This is The Way. Din’s only way forward. 

He stares at his string, tempted to cut his ring finger off just to get it to vanish. Except, some part of him knows that won’t help. There is no comfort there, only fear. He hates it, hates that he doesn’t know what it’s leading him to, because if he knew, he could avoid whatever lay at the other end of it. Din knows that he knew what they led to at one point. But now, he never wants to remember what’s on the other side of these fucking strings.

Din drops his head into his hands, and tries to be okay with that. He’s made his choice, This is The Way.

* * *

“Yo, Mando!” Din tries not to groan when the man shows up behind him, he’s just trying to find his bounty and get out. He’s new to this, still trying to figure it all out. Being a Bounty Hunter is a complicated profession, and he doesn’t like the attention he gets from his helmet. Din wouldn’t change it for anything but that doesn’t mean he has to like it. 

He’s finally gotten a ship, a Razor Crest, a Pre-Empire ship. The Armorer told him it would be the best way to make sure none of them can be tracked, and Din doesn’t want that either, for himself or for The Tribe. He doesn’t need any Imp scum on his ass, he’s just trying to help out the Tribe the best he can.

This is The Way. 

Din doesn’t say anything in return, just minds his own business, keeping an eye out for his bounty. The tracking fob led him here, so he sits and waits. 

“Aye, Mando, if you keep ignoring me like that, you won’t last long here,” The man sneers, and Din keeps his head down, doing the exact opposite of what the man asks of him. 

“Leave him alone, Caskeon, you know annoying him won’t do you any favors,” The bartender says casually, placing a drink to the side of Din’s left hand. 

Din doesn’t look at his string. 

“Why should I, coming here, stealing our people for his fucking bounties.” The man, who Din now sadly knows as Caskeon, spits, _literally,_ onto Din’s visor. 

Din knows he should act rationally about this, he’s here on a bounty, he shouldn’t start fights he knows he can finish, just because he can. Getting in bar fights would be bad for his street credit, he should be a respectable hire, causing too much trouble would be bad for business. 

That being said...

Din throws the first punch. Hitting him clean in the jaw, Din hadn’t realized how much anger he had pulsing through his veins. He’s been angry since he was a foundling. He felt like a sun about to go out, everything right on the precipice, just waiting to be unleashed. It wasn’t like the sparring he did with his Tribe, this was angrier. The anger has replaced the longing he felt so long ago. Part of him wants to lose control. He doesn’t allow himself to lose control. 

He’s grateful for his helmet, as when the other man swings, it hurts him more than it does Din. The armor does a lot to brace him in the fight, Din getting better hits in and the hits are quicker too. It might not be pure beskar, but it’s better than nothing. Maybe one day Din will be able to find pure beskar to make armor out of. By that point, it may be in his station to keep the beskar, and even have enough to give leave behind for the foundlings. He’s always been one of the strongest fighters in the Tribe, not trying to hype himself up too much. He knows how to throw a punch, and he knows how to avoid one, so the fight goes just the way he wants, with him winning. 

“Caskeon, you keep getting Mandos riled up, I’m gonna ban you from the bar,” The bartender chuckles, watching the man groan and writhe on the floor. 

Din may be a little too happy about the way the guy is feeling right now. He looks up, and spies his bounty. Ignoring the man on the floor, he strolls up to the bounty. 

Resting his hand on his blaster, he stares down at the bail bouncer, and simply says, “I can bring you in warm or I can bring you in cold,”

* * *

Din doesn’t pay attention to his string, he has no care for it. Though, as he’s landing on Tatooine, he notices something. 

His string tightens. Almost in a parallel line next to him, and Din looks up briefly, noticing it drift into the piece of junk speeding out of Mos Eisley. Serves them right for flying a Corellian light freighter, it’s one of the most obvious ships out there. Din watches as a couple of Imperial ships shoot out right after the ship gets in the air. 

He gets a quick flash of those beautiful blue eyes, reflecting a binary sunset in them, full of longing. Din shakes it out of his head. He doesn’t think about the person he made up in his dreams all those years ago anymore. 

Din stares at his string, watching it get looser and looser as the ship makes the jump into hyperspace, or so he guesses. He doesn’t care though, he hates this stupid string. 

He has a job to do. There’s a smuggler that he’s supposed to find.

* * *

Din doesn’t think about the strings again until after he rescues The Child and gets him off Nevarro. 

He’s gotten used to looking through the string, through everyone’s strings. He doesn’t care about them enough to pay attention to them, to seek them out, they’re just pretty lights that float towards the sky, leading everyone somewhere else, leading Din somewhere else. Some people’s strings are frayed, some are red, very few people have no strings at all. He may notice them, that doesn’t mean he cares for them. 

Except...the kid has a string. 

The string wraps itself around his wrist instead of his finger, like Din’s does. It’s tugging him in the opposite direction. This small child has a path before him, and Din is taking him in the opposite direction of it. Din turns around his chair, and watches the kid as he sleeps. They’re in hyperspace...Din thinks somewhere in the outer rim would be a good place to settle for a little bit. Din watches as the kid’s string floats out the window, somewhere far away. 

Din almost feels bad for doing this. 

Keyword...almost.

* * *

Sorgan is a lovely place. Even Din can’t deny that. It’s so different to where he’s been the last couple of years, that it would be a blessing to stay. It’s a good space for the kid. The village is nice, it might be a good place to lay low. Looking around at all the green, the sun high in the blue sky, Din could almost picture a life here. 

But ever since he noticed that the kid has a string, he can’t seem to get it out of his head that he needs to make sure the kid can have the chance to find whatever is on the other side of it. Even Din might be a little curious about what that might be at this point. Din still doesn’t care what’s on the other side of his, though.

...Omera is nice too, and Din can’t deny how beautiful she is. Din doesn’t usually notice those types of things in people, whether they’re good-looking or not. Omera might be the first person since...well anyone. Most of the people he comes into contact with are bounties. Yeah, there’s been a few people, he’s...done things with, but that was mostly a means to an end, no offense to them. Omera is...different. She’s kind but headstrong, capable in her own right. She calms a lot of his nerves about the kid and she’s pleasant to talk to as well. She can shoot, which is something Din didn’t think he would find attractive in a partner, but now that Din’s thinking about it, he’s not surprised. Even Cara brought up Omera’s interest in him. 

Din thinks about his interest in her when he’s telling her that he wants to leave the kid in her care. 

“We want you to stay,” She says instead of a simple okay, and Din is taken aback. 

She’s telling him that he could have a place to belong again, a place to call home that isn’t underground tunnels and hiding. He wouldn’t have given up The Covert for anything, it was his tribe, his people, even if trying to keep everyone hidden and everyone safe was an extra complication at times. It was The Covert that got him off Nevarro, they left their safety for him because It Is The Way. And, after all they did for him, it would feel wrong to put away the armor, like she’s asking him to do. That’s not the issue though.

The issue is that Din can’t help but notice the string. Her string. Still golden, but like those other ones he’s seen before, it’s frayed at the ends. He normally wouldn’t care about the strings, but it...feels wrong, to try and stay with her. She didn’t get a chance to follow that string, and it makes Din feel almost...guilty. She’s saying almost all the right words, and Din so desperately wants to stay, stay with her, let the kid be a kid for a little while, but there’s a deep ache in his bones that is telling him he can’t.

Flashes of those blue eyes cross his mind, and Din begs himself to forget about them, the person he’s made up inside his head. The sandy blond hair pushes into his thoughts as well, he remembers the time he would allow himself to think about running his hands through their hair. The green laser lights up the blue eyes, they’re full of power, and sadness. They long for someone. Din pushes the imaginary person out of his brain. The one he made up so long ago. 

She reaches up, and tries to take off his helmet. Din almost lets her. Then, he takes her wrists in his hands, stopping her. 

“I don’t belong here...” He says, a confession he knows to be true, “But he does.” 

She would make a good Mandalorian, with the way she tells him that she will look after the kid like one of her own, and it makes Din’s heart crack a little bit more. 

Then, Cara takes out the bounty hunter. Immediately, Din knows he has to leave, and he has to take the kid with him. He crushes the fob underneath his foot. 

Damn these strings and damn these fobs.

* * *

As he jumps into hyperspace to get away from the space station bay, he thinks about the New Republic. He doesn’t know much about it, what they are doing. A lot of it is the same, The Empire, the New Republic, even what he vaguely remembers about the Old Republic and the Separatists. 

He wonders how much has changed, truly changed since the Empire has fallen. Din loosens the ball from the lever. He looks over to the kid, who sits in the chair behind him. 

“I told you that was a bad idea.” Din hands it to him. 

He knows he’s gotten attached to the kid. Maybe...when things have settled down enough, they might be able to find what’s on the other end of the kid’s string. It could be a fun adventure. 

Din wonders if any of it will truly be different, the governments, the people he works with. There are changes that Din would make if he could, if he had the power, but he also doesn’t want that. He wants to be free, no one forcing his hand or changing things he can’t control. The idea of being forced into a position that he can’t get out of because of his birth or who he is, sounds like a terrible life. 

There are so many things Din can’t control and that he can’t choose in this life. He couldn’t control his parents dying, but he could control the Creed, he could control who took off his helmet, when and if that ever happened. He chose The Way, he chose this path, he could have gotten out of it anytime he wanted too. Din chose to save the kid, no one forced his hand, he was given a way to ignore the situation through the Hunter’s code. Din just couldn’t ignore the child, looking so helpless, like it needed a place to belong. Just like Din always has.

Maybe...that’s why he doesn’t want to know what is on the other side of his string, it’s something he didn’t choose, he doesn’t want. It’s a path to something out of his control and if he follows it, then well, the thing that’s on the other side of it may not be something that he wants. He has continuously ignored the pulling that came from the string for his whole life, and he isn’t going to stop anytime soon. But that’s how he feels about his own string. This kid isn’t his, Din isn’t his father. Din should give the kid a chance to see what’s on the other side of the string. Maybe, it would give him something Din can’t offer. 

The kid smiles and coos at him, and Din wishes that he was a better man.

* * *

It isn’t until after the fight on Nevarro when Din thinks about the strings again, well, not his string, just the kid’s. It’s been a crazy couple of weeks, with him gaining his signet, and his jetpack. He misses the IG unit more than he will say, and he won’t admit that maybe droids aren’t so bad. Din misses Kuiil, Din wishes he never involved him, and let him go back to where he belonged, which was free. And...well, there is his order from the Armorer. 

They’re looking for the kid’s clan, his people. The Armorer called them Jedi, a group of sorcerers, and Din believes her, just thinking about what the kid can do. Din would rather be flying around the ends of the universe to see what’s at the end of his string, than trying to find a Jedi. All of the rumors surrounding the Jedi have been leading virtually nowhere, and he’s frustrated. 

Why couldn’t he have picked up a normal kid? He wouldn’t change the kid for the world, but damn, his powers make things more difficult. Din knows what the Armorer said to do, to bring him to his clan, his people. But, Din’s grown fond of the kid, he doesn’t want to say that out loud, because Din knows he’s going to have to give him up one day. 

Despite that... for now, Din lets himself believe he won’t have to give the kid up, that he won’t have to leave him behind one day. Din allows himself to view him as his father. A clan of two. They take care of each other, like the Mandalorians took care of him all those years ago. 

If there are rumors out there about Jedi, then there is certainly some truth to them. Maybe the kid’s string is leading him to a Jedi. Din weighs the importance of the strings to the importance of the rumors, but there isn’t much else he can do. He can either follow the kid’s string or he can follow the rumors. However, that would mean giving the strings power, and that’s the last thing Din wants to do. 

Though, he thinks about all the people he’s met and all their strings for a moment. Cara had a string leading her far away, and Din’s not surprised, Nevarro is nice, but Din wouldn’t have imagined staying there if it wasn’t for the covert. Karga’s string was cut off. Peli’s string is tighter than anyone else’s, Din assumes that it must be leading somewhere nearby. Guess her path is more clear than anyone else’s. Glancing down at his own string, he watches out the window as it keeps going on and on, just how Din wants it to be. 

Din has thought about telling people about the strings, telling them about the path before them, but the string shouldn’t be in charge of anyone’s destiny, that should be up to them. 

He listens to the Armorer, that there should be Jedi out there somewhere. He decides to start with finding other Mandalorians. 

“Brr,” The child babbles from his spot in his chair, before he climbs down and over to Din.

The child reaches up for him, and Din happily obliges. 

“Hey there, kid,” Din says, placing him on his lap, so he can continue flying the ship. He loosens the ball from the lever and hands it to the kid. 

“Are you ready to find a Jedi?” Din asks, and the kid grins at him. Din softens at the kid, and then Din realizes something.

_Oh...this is gonna break Din’s little heart, isn’t it?_

* * *

Din...is going through a lot at the moment. 

He meets other Mandalorians, but they take off their helmets, they tell him he’s a part of a cult. Din doesn’t believe that. Din finds a Jedi. The Jedi tells him that The Child’s name is Grogu...his kid’s name is Grogu. The Jedi, Ahsoka Tano, won’t train the kid. Sends him to Tython instead. Imps blow up the Razor Crest. Gideon takes Grogu. Boba Fett and Fennec offer help. Din breaks his creed for Grogu. Din realizes he would do it over again the same way to get the information he needs to save the kid. It’s his _kid._ He doesn’t want to think about the day he is going to have to give Grogu back to his kind. Din just wants to think about getting him back in his arms, he wants his clan back. 

He sits in the Slave 1, and thinks about everything he’s gone through up until now. He replays all the things he’s gone through since committing to getting Grogu back to his own kind, the Jedi. 

He sends a message, “Moff Gideon. You have something I want. You may think you have some idea of what you are in possession of, but you do not. Soon, he will be back with me. He means more to me than you will ever know.”

After the message, Boba Fett, Fennec and Cara give him some space, letting him feel everything. Din doesn’t want to feel everything. He’s angry, angry in the way that he was as a foundling, a bitter taste in his mouth. Din thinks about the Jedi, wishing he had someone to give him more answers. He wishes he could have convinced Tano to train Grogu, then he wouldn’t be in this mess, he wouldn’t have lost Grogu. Grogu didn’t even get a chance to think about finding the other end of his string, his path in life, he’s a _child._ What could Imps want with a child so badly?

For the first time in his life, Din stares down at his own string, wishing he had more answers to how the universe functioned. Wishing that there was someone out there who would sit down and tell him all the things he doesn’t understand, about Grogu, about himself...at this point even about the strings. He just wants to know why he’s been cursed with this sight of the strings. Din thinks back to those dreams he has sometimes, with the deep blue eyes, the sandy blond hair that Din could run his hands through, and that damned green laser. There is something he’s missing about the strings. 

Din just wants answers and his kid back, is that too much to ask for? Is it too much to ask for a clan of his own, a place to belong too? He’s so sick of running away and hiding. While he understood why his tribe hid and Din agreed with it, at this point, Din wants to be free. Free of the strings, free of the curse, free of it all. 

He thinks of Sorgan, and wonders if he could have been happy there, with Omera. His bones ache again, like he’s missing something he’s never even known, his string shines with a golden light and Din pushes it all out of his head. He focuses instead on getting Grogu back.

There are just some things you can’t think about.

* * *

“It’s...you...Brown Eyes,” The man in front of Din says, a breathy sort of amazement. He has the same eyes that Din dreams about, he has the same sandy hair that Din remembers, and his laser sword is the same color of green that haunts Din. 

_Fucking what?_

The string. Din’s string is connected to the man in front of him. The man who just took out the whole battalion of droids in minutes. Din is so confused, he thought the string was supposed to show him a path, a journey, and now it’s connecting him to a person? It doesn’t make sense, this isn’t how he remembers it, that’s not how it was before he met the Mandalorians. It was always leading him away from the path he wants to be on. It’s connected him to a person after all this time _and it’s a fucking Jedi?_

Din follows the string from his left hand to the place where it ties around the man’s ring finger, same as Din. Din watches the man’s eyes, and then, he realizes. 

“...You can see it too?”

Smoke billows into the Bridge of the Cruiser, Din had been so busy trying to protect Grogu, and prepare himself for what was coming at them, that he wasn’t paying attention to his string. The bridge is bright and suddenly, Din is very aware of the crew he’s brought along, Fennec, Bo-Katan, Bo-Katan’s friend...Koska?...and Cara. There’s an anxiety in Din, and he can tell it radiates off the others too, all waiting for the next shoe to drop, waiting for the man to attack them too. Din doesn’t care about them right now. He tilts his head in confusion, noticing the tears that appear in the man’s eyes. 

“Yes,” The man breathes, and Din doesn’t know how to respond. 

_The Jedi...he has the same laser swords as Tano did, he must be a Jedi. The Jedi can see the strings too. Din’s not alone in that anymore. Also, how does the Jedi know he has brown eyes?_

The man looks like he is about to cry, which Din doesn’t know how to handle, especially if this is supposed to be the Jedi that Tano was talking about, the one that would be willing to train his son. Din can tell he’s trying to maintain a sense of composure. Din can’t deny though that the man is beautiful, and the all black outfit makes him stand out in the silveriness of the bridge, and Din can’t tear his eyes away once they catch the man’s. Grogu coos in his arms, and Din holds him tighter, not wanting to let go just yet. 

Din doesn’t even know the man’s name yet. 

“You’re a Jedi...you answered Grogu’s call...you came to rescue him, to train him.” Din says slowly, and the man nods, and Din lets out a sigh of relief, a hitched sort of sob that embarasses the hell out of him, but there are too many emotions flowing through him right now to care, “You’re gonna take him and train him now, aren’t you?” 

“You can come with us.” The man says, and Grogu coos in agreement, “After all...our strings are connected.”

The man reaches out a hand, staring through Din’s visor, right into his eyes. The man waits, and Din is conflicted. There’s the ache deep in Din’s bones, but it’s different then with Omera, it’s the longing he’s always felt, a place to call home, to settle down, screaming at him. He used to be great at listening, that’s what the Tribe always told him. He guesses that’s true with all the messes he’s gotten himself into over the years. He stares at the man, something pulsing in the air, and Din wants everything to stop. The low buzz of the ship’s engines fills the silence between the men. Grogu looks up at him, and places a hand on his helmet. Looking down at his son, Din doesn’t feel conflicted anymore, and everything about his fear of the strings changes, almost softening at the touch. 

He allows himself to listen, just this once. 

Din steps forward and takes the man’s hand in his. He gives Din a bright smile, and Din already wants to see it again. It’s a nice smile. The man turns and leads him down the hallway. 

Something sings in Din’s ears. Din thinks he has a concussion.

* * *

Din stands awkwardly on the balcony. Din still doesn’t really know how he ended up here, but his eyes trace the string back to Luke. The Jedi’s name is Luke Skywalker, and there’s that damn singing in his ear again. Grogu fell asleep on his way to the Jedi’s temple...Luke’s temple. 

A group of children were already waiting for Luke when they landed, all seeming very interested in what Luke was up to, and Din was impressed at how easily Luke convinced them to go back inside, with the promises of stories in the morning. Luke then led Din to a spare room, telling him Grogu would be safe there, and they should give him some time to sleep. Din doesn’t want to leave him so soon, but there isn’t much he can do now that the little womp-rat is sleeping. 

Din hasn’t said anything since they landed, even if he did give some waves to the kids who seemed interested in the new people at the Temple. Din doesn’t blame them, Din remembers how he felt when new Foundlings showed up. For now, Din watches as Luke stares up at the sky, and Din wonders if he’s getting used to his string not floating up there amongst them, like Din’s getting used too. Din tries to get his thoughts straight, trying to remember if he had ever seen strings connecting to someone else, and he can’t. 

It’s a hot and humid night, Din shifts a bit in his armor. It’s been a while since Din had been a place this humid, it would take some getting used to if he’s going to stay with Grogu while he trains. The stars are bright, and the moon hangs low in the sky. Din watches as Luke shrugs off his cloak, placing it over the edge of the balcony...the black outfit is more form-fitting than Din originally thought it was. Fuck. 

“I’ve...never seen the strings lead to someone else, I’ve never seen the other side of one before...what do they mean?” Din finally breaks the silence, and Luke smiles, opening his eyes and turning to face him. The moonlight is soft on Luke’s face, and Din tries to remember to breathe. 

“I was told that they are called Force Connections, soulmates. I’ve only met two other people who could see them...until you, but they’re gone now,” Luke says, and Din just stares at him. Briefly, Din wonders if the helmet is unnerving, but...Luke doesn’t seem phased by it at all. Din didn’t realize how much of a comfort that would be. 

Suddenly, Din steps forward, getting into Luke’s personal space, and Luke glups. Din would chuckle if he wasn’t so entranced by Luke. His eyes look like the oceans he’s seen, the blue sky of Tatooine, they’re beautiful, and the way that they shine in the moonlight...is indescribable. Din thinks back to the Cruiser, and remembers all the dreams that showed him these eyes in a cast of green light. It’s always been Luke. 

Slipping off his glove in one easy motion, Din reaches up and brushes the hair out of Luke’s eyes. He could stare into those eyes for the rest of his life. Din tilts his head down. Luke is shorter than him. Din’s eyes scan the rest of Luke’s face, picking out every tiny scar, each freckle and the moles he has. 

He’s something made out of magic.

“I’ve seen your eyes before...in dreams,” Din whispers, voice soft. He’s standing close now, their chests almost touching, and Din is even surprised at how close he’s allowing himself to get to the man he’s just met. 

Luke did save him and his son after all. 

“I’ve seen yours too,” Luke admits, and part of him should be angry, furious that Luke has seen his eyes, but...there’s no anger there, just calm. 

“So...we’re soulmates, that’s what the string means, yeah?” Din asks. 

Luke just nods, and Din is still so close to him. Din hums as he cups his hand around the back of Luke’s neck, bringing his helmet to touch Luke’s forehead. Din watches as Luke lets his eyes drift closed, and Din’s heart aches, his bones ache, but in a way that feels like home. There’s a beat before either of them speak again, letting the sounds of nature fill the space between them. 

“It’s nice, your presence feels nice,” Din says, because it’s the truth. He hasn’t felt this calm since...ever? Luke’s face immediately flares up in a blush. Din chuckles and pulls his head away from Luke’s but keeps his hand on the back on Luke’s neck. 

“I’m glad you feel comfortable here,” Luke whispers, lifting his hands to rest on Din’s biceps. Din can’t look away from him. 

“If I had known sooner, that the string meant that we were soulmates...I would have come to find you sooner. I was the only one who could see them, so they scared me, I ran away from it.” 

“I mean...I wasn’t exactly on the first ship out of Tatooine to find you either, so I guess we’re even. I knew what they were, I never tried to find you...” Luke admits, and Din shrugs, and he can tell that Luke relaxes a bit in relief, but there’s still an anxiety to him, Din wonders why. 

“I don’t think that matters much now.” 

Din feels the most relaxed than he has ever been, calm and collected. The air may be hot and humid, but he feels cool, like he has nothing to worry about in Luke’s presence. Din has spent so many years going in the exact opposite direction of his string, that he can’t believe he’s staring at the end of it. Din should have realized that it would be a person sooner, that’s why Omera’s string was cut off, not because she didn’t get a chance to find her path, but because she _lost them._ Din mourns her loss, a loss he truly hopes she can move forward from.

Din runs the knuckle of his finger down Luke’s cheek, and Luke lets his eyes close, leaning into the touch. Din’s eyes land on Luke’s lips, impossibly pink. Din lets himself think for a moment. Everything was leading to this moment, with Luke, and all Din wants to do is kiss him. He’s never felt this way about anyone, this excited about what comes next, and maybe he should be scared that it’s happening so quickly, but there is something about Luke that Din can’t place his finger on, and Din is willing to jump head first to figure out what it is. 

“I know...that we’re soulmates and everything...but I’m not ready for you to see my face,” Din confesses. 

“Of course...I understand.” 

“So, keep your eyes closed.” 

Din’s hand is on the edge of his helmet before he can think otherwise. Luke looks confused, but he listens, doesn’t open his eyes, not pushing Din any further. Din is grateful. Din takes off his helmet, the humid air feels nice on his skin compared to the dry pressurized air in the ship he’s been used to hiding away in. However, Luke gasps when Din places a hand on Luke’s cheek, pressing his lips to Luke’s. Immediately, Luke wraps his arms around Din’s waist, pulling them flush against each other. Din’s head is swirling, he’s kissing someone, and this person is his soulmate. 

Din feels like he’s on fire, but in the best possible way. He’s burned alone for so long, that now, this feels like relief. There were a few times that Din imagined kissing someone, but this feels better than Din could have ever imagined. Tingles run up Din’s back to the crown of his head, it feels almost like magic. The longing in his chest, that’s always been there, ever since his parents died, like a knot that’s been sitting in his chest, unravels and Din loses himself in Luke’s lips. The longing has morphed into something different, one of those things that was always just out of touch, just out of reach. 

Din almost gasps when he realizes what the feeling is. _Belonging._ A place for him and the kid, right here in Luke’s arms. Din may have avoided his string, but it led him right here, right to this moment, and Din apologizes to the god he threatened all those years ago. Luke is right here, and everything feels _right._

The singing in his ears starts again, and Din thinks about mentioning it to Luke, knowing that he probably has a concussion. With his hands on Luke’s cheeks, he feels a wetness. 

_He’s crying_ , Din realizes. 

Nervous about pushing Luke further than he wants to go, Din pulls away. He watches as Luke squeezes his eyes shut tighter, and leans forward to chase Din’s lips. Butterflies erupt in Din’s chest with the fact that Luke still wants to kiss him, Din lets out a low chuckle. The pads of Din’s thumbs wipe the tears away, before pressing more kisses to Luke’s cheeks, and Luke breaks out into a smile, a half sob, half laugh rips itself out of Luke’s throat. 

“Was that alright?” Din whispers, leaning his forehead to place on Luke’s. 

“Yeah.” Luke breathes out, reaching up to place his hands on either side of Din’s face, fingertips brushing into his hair, Din trying not to groan, and lets Luke pull him back in, “It was perfect.”

* * *

Din stares at Grogu, the little womp-rat. He finally went down after many, many hours of attempting to get him to sleep, and Din is exhausted. But, now, the kid is sleeping peacefully, and Din can’t sleep. Maybe it’s the anxious father in him, maybe he’s not used to staying in one place for so long, or maybe he’s trying to avoid the nightmares that keep worming their way back into his head.Whatever it is, it hums underneath his skin, and Din’s eyes stay wide open. 

Grumbling to himself, Din grabs the helmet off the side table, lowering it back onto his head. Slowly getting up from the bed to not wake the kid, Din makes his way out of the room. 

The temple is quiet, the rustle of the trees and Din’s footsteps are the only things echoing in the hallway. Din likes how calm Yavin is, not much going on, it’s simple. It’s been a month since Luke brought him back here. Din can leave when Karga or Cara need help with anything, and Luke never has to ask him to come back, cause Din is always saying it first. Luke, sunshine embodied, everything about Luke is so bright, and Din’s tried to keep some space in between them, so Din can get his head on straight. 

He never wanted to find what was on the other side of his string, but now he has, and there’s Luke, a place to settle down and belong, and Din wants to be able to stay so bad, but part of him still worries about what else is out there for him, for the kid. Din can no longer avoid everyone else’s strings, it’s all he sees when he looks at Luke’s padawans, watching when Luke’s family came to visit, Leia and Han’s stings connecting them to each other as their son ran towards Luke, his string taking him far away from the planet. All the strings leading them to somewhere, to someone, and Din...isn’t scared of that fact anymore. 

“LEAVE ME ALONE,” A voice breaks through Din’s thoughts, making him jump to action. A crash follows not long after. 

The sound came from one of the rooms up ahead, and Din quickens his pace to get to the source of the noise. Looking around, Din realizes it’s the room farthest away from everyone else...Luke’s room. He watches as their string disappears underneath the door, tightening and relaxing. Without a second thought, he presses the button to open it, and his breath gets caught in his throat. 

Luke writhes on the bed, objects in the room levitating, his hands form fists at his side. Din steps in slowly, trying not to scare him more. Luke’s eyes are clamped shut, and he’s breathing heavily, sweat rolling down his face. 

Luke’s having a nightmare.

Din dodges as a vase gets thrown his direction, making his way towards the bed. Luke’s sheets are a tangled mess, and they stick to his chest, soaked in Luke’s sweat. How long has he been stuck in this nightmare for? His heart aches for him, sliding on to the edge of the bed, slipping his gloves off, and gently places his hands on Luke’s arms, running them up and down. 

“Luke, I’m here...you’re not alone, wake up,” Din says softly, shaking him a bit, trying his hardest not to scare him more than he already is. 

Luke’s eyes shoot open, quickly scrambling up and glancing around the room. Under Din’s hands, his shoulders are so tense, wound up, and nervous. He clutches his right wrist, massaging it with his other hand. Luke’s chest heaves, as Luke tries to calm his breathing. His eyes land on Din’s visor, and he softens, hands coming up to intertwine with Din’s. 

“Are you okay?” Din whispers, and Luke looks conflicted. His eyes are red, tears stain his cheeks, and his lip is bleeding from where he must have bit it too hard. 

“Just a bad dream, that’s all,” Luke says, squeezing Din’s hands, and Din shakes his head.

“I’ve seen bad dreams before...I have a kid. This was worse than just a bad dream, talk to me.” Din doesn’t know why he’s pushing, he doesn’t want to make Luke feel uncomfortable, but...something in his gut is telling him not to let Luke hide these feelings away. 

Luke sighs, pushing the sweaty hair out of his face, leaning back against the cool stone of the wall. Din gives him a minute, letting him collect his thoughts, giving him his own space as much as he can. The moonlight streams in from the window and Luke’s eyes shine with tears. 

“My time in the rebellion took its toll on me.” Luke whispers, and Din raises a hand to Luke’s cheek, “I’ve seen a lot of things, and...they haunt me.” 

Din knows there’s more to it than just memories haunting Luke, but he doesn’t want to push, he wants to give Luke space to be, to trust him with the things he’s seen. He rubs Luke’s cheekbone with his thumb, and Luke leans into the touch. 

“My parents died when I was a child, it was during the Clone Wars. The Separatist army came into the city and started open firing. My parents tried their hardest to protect me, put me in a cellar and tried to draw the fire away. The Republic wasn’t there to save us, but the Mandalorians were. They rescued me, they took me in. Even now, after all these years, I am still haunted by the blasts and the droids, but I’ve had a lot of years to understand what happened to me..Luke, it’s okay that this is still haunting you,” Din gives up this secret, something that many people don’t know about the battle-harden Mandalorian. 

“You were an orphan?” Luke asks, and Din nods. 

“I was a foundling. The Mandalorians took me in just like you have taken in your students.” 

That breaks the dam. Tears roll over, and run down Luke’s cheeks. Immediately, Din has his arms wrapped around Luke, pulling him in close. He lets Luke cry, rubbing his back, trying to be as soothing as possible. There must have been a weight on Luke’s shoulders for so long, and Din just hopes he can help him move forward. 

Eventually, Luke’s sobs stop, and Din releases him a little, hands still on his shoulders, so Din can look at him. His eyes are red and tears stain his cheeks. Din’s heart breaks to see him like this. 

“I felt so alone for so long, I was the only person who could see the strings, and I felt like I was going to explode. I used to stare at the night sky on Tatooine, pulling on my string, waiting for the day I could get out. I wanted so badly to run away to find you for so long, Din, I longed to find you. But I had a responsibility, to the rebellion, to my family, to the Jedi of Old, and I have burned. I have burned for so long by myself. I would get worried I was going to turn into my father just for wanting you, even if I had no idea who you were,” Luke says, voice raw and husky from crying. 

“Your father?” Din questions, and Luke takes a deep breath in. 

“My father... my father was Darth Vader. His string was connected to my mother’s and he...ruined himself to be with her. He was a Jedi once, back when he was Anakin Skywalker. Jedi didn’t allow attachments, even knowing about the Force Connections. My father could see the strings, and couldn’t handle not being allowed to be with her, so he broke the code for her. When things started falling apart, he didn’t have healthy attachments with the ones he loved, with my mother. He never learned to be able to one day let them go. He fell to the Dark Side in order to protect her...but she died anyways. He came back...to the Light Side, before when he died on the second Death Star...but his string haunts me, his path haunts me.” Luke lays it all out on the table. 

Din is silent for a moment, he wouldn’t have expected someone as loving and kind as Luke would have been related to someone like Vader. Sure, Din didn’t have any intimate knowledge about the Emperor’s lap dog, but he’d heard stories in the tunnels, in the bars, and the Guild’s that he passed through, about the things that Vader was capable of. He knows bounty hunters who have worked with The Empire before, and even Boba had admitted that he had worked closely with Vader at one point, in order to find...his son. _Oh._

“So...the Jedi don’t allow attachment? What about...” Din doesn’t finish his sentence, hoping Luke can make the connection without Din needing to admit that there might be a them. 

“...I can’t imagine not having my family in my life. A lot of my strength to do the things that I’ve done has come from them. I lost my hand trying to rescue them.” Din’s eyes glance down to Luke’s wrist, seeing the scar there, “I want to change that...the Old Order may have had a reason to not allow attachments, and I don’t blame them for that but I think...by the end it wasn’t about that anymore...it was different. But, I want to encourage healthy attachments, for them to find the people in their lives who make them feel strong, who give them a support system, one that they know about.” 

“Luke...I don’t think you’re going to turn into your father just because you let yourself get attached to someone. It sounds like you have a pretty good understanding of being able to let people, but no matter what, I’ll be there to make sure that never happens,” Din whispers, and Luke stares at him in amazement. 

Din wraps his hand around the back of Luke’s neck, and brings him close. Pressing their foreheads together, Din wonders if Luke knows how grateful Din is for even the simple act of Luke existing, after all this time, after all the things he’s been through and seen. 

“I hated the strings, hated _my_ string. It led me away from the Mandalorians, the people who had taken me and taken care of me. I ran away, because I thought it would lead me to something that I didn’t want, but...then Grogu had a string, and I couldn’t ignore his string the same way that I ignored mine. If we couldn’t find a Jedi...well, then I was gonna hunt down whatever was on the other side of his. Luke...I’m glad you were on the other side of mine,” Din whispers, and Luke gives him a watery laugh. 

“I’m glad you’re on the end of mine, Din. Thank you for waking me up and staying.” Din’s heart soars. 

They sit there for a few minutes, foreheads touching, listening to each other breathe. Din moves away a bit, and looks down at their string. It’s golden and bright against the silver moonlight. His eyes move back up to Luke’s face, his eyes blinking heavily. 

“Rest, I’ll be right here,” Din whispers, and Luke sighs in relief, shifting over in the bed. 

Din moves to the spot beside him, leaning against the wall, as Luke lays his head on the pillow. Luke moves his hand, the one with their string tied around Luke’s ring finger, and intertwines his fingers through Din’s. He watches as Luke’s eyes close, and Din waits until his breathing levels out before even thinking about closing his own eyes. 

He’s gonna owe one kid a lot of blue cookies in the morning.

* * *

They’re dating...Din and Luke are _dating._

It’s mid-afternoon on Yavin IV when Din lands his ship. He’d been helping out Karga and Cara on Nevarro, and he’s excited to return, to see Grogu, Luke and the rest of the students. He’d been gone for two weeks, and already Din hated staring out at the string drifting in space, going in the opposite direction of the path he’s on. 

As he makes his way off the ship, Din thinks about how much has changed in the couple of months since meeting Luke. He never thought that he would ever want answers to the strings, but now that he has them, Din doesn’t know what he would do without the knowledge. With Luke telling him all he knows about the strings, which isn’t a lot but it’s more than he knew, Din realizes something. 

Din’s parents had a connecting string. The thought of it brings tears to Din’s eyes now, and Luke is the only person he wants to talk to it about. 

It’s an off day at the temple, all the students doing various activities. There’s a group of them playing force-scotch. The breeze is nice, a beautiful sunny day is perfect for a day off, getting them outside and in the fresh-air. A couple students sit in a circle, playing cards, and Din smiles to himself. The temple reminds him of being with the Mandalorians early on, there was always someone willing to play a game, all the foundlings still trying to get used to the new path that they’ve chosen. Luke has been talking about taking some time off to search for new students recently, and Din likes the idea of traveling around the universe with Luke, finding more people to provide a home too, a place to belong. 

“Mr. Mando, would you want to play a game with us?” A young human boy asks as Din makes his way passed. Din pauses and crouches by the group of students.

“Thank you for the offer, but I’m looking for Master Luke, so maybe we can play a game later?” 

“Yeah! He’s in the garden with Grogu!” One of the Togruta girls smiles up at Din, and he thanks them, letting them get back to their game. 

He chuckles to himself, over the fact that he could see the string leading him to the path that leads to the garden. He makes his way down it, the canopy of trees shade him from the sun. He likes this walk, having taken plenty of times with Grogu to get him to sleep, and hiding away in the dark with Luke, following wandering hands wherever they want to lead too. 

“No, Grogu, those are not for eating.” Luke’s voice dances over the breeze, and Din’s chest erupts in butterflies.

“Bah!” 

Luke’s laugh sounds like sunshine encapsulated, and Din tucks it into his heart for safe keeping. He stops at the gate in the garden, seeing that Luke had switched out his Jedi robes for something more suitable for tending to the plants. The pair had been working hard on it ever since Grogu and Din arrived, Luke excited to have someone who wanted to care for plants the same way he does. The garden is quite large, flowers and vines twisting around the gate and the fence that protects it. He spies that some of the new fruits and vegetables have bloomed in his time away.

The pair sit on the ground next to each other, Grogu waiting intently as Luke digs a hole in the ground. He turns back to Grogu, holding his hand out, and Grogu places seeds in them, which Luke then places in the hole. Din follows their string, leading right up to Luke’s hand, and Din’s heart soars. 

There’s that feeling again, inside Din’s body, sending tingles through it. _Belonging._ Luke glances over at Din, and smiles brightly.

“Hey there, handsome,” Luke greets, wiping his hands on his pants before standing up, Grogu already making his way to the gate to greet his father, who opens it, and picks him up. 

“Hey there, farmboy,” Din teases, getting an eye roll from Luke. 

“You can take the boy out of the farm, but you can’t take the farming out of the boy,” Luke responds, and Din laughs. 

Luke crosses the short distance between the pair, and presses a kiss to Din’s helmet. Grateful that Luke can’t see his blush, Din’s hand finds the back of Luke’s neck, pressing their foreheads together. 

“We missed you,” Luke whispers, mirroring Din, letting his hand rest in the small space between Din’s helmet and Din’s armor, just before his cloak. Din pulls away, and Luke gives him a big smile, and Grogu cuddles closer to Din. 

“I missed you both too.” Grogu reaches up and pushes on the edge of Din’s helmet, “Hey buddy, not now.” 

“I can guard the gate if you want a minute alone,” Luke offers, and once again, Din’s heart cannot believe that this man is in his life. Din thinks back to his parents for a moment, then glances down at his son. 

“Actually...that would be nice,” Din smiles, and Luke nods, sidestepping the father and son duo to make his way down the path. Din watches the string get longer as he gets further away. 

When Din knows Luke is out of sight, Din slips off the helmet. Immediately, Grogu laughs, clamoring up to touch his forehead with Din’s. Din grins, thanking the Force for giving him this, a place to belong. 

“Yeah buddy, I missed you too, I’m not going away anytime soon,” Din tells him, and Grogu squeals in delight. 

Din lets Grogu show him all the new plants that Luke and him have been putting in the garden. He listens as Grogu babbles, trying to encourage him to attempt to use words, since Din still doesn’t know when Grogu is starting to develop speech patterns. Din just doesn’t want Grogu to end up like Luke’s master, since that would just be exhausting. They sit together for a little bit, playing catch while the sun lowers itself from the sky. 

“I have to talk with Luke about something, okay kid?” He says, slowly getting up so Grogu can make his way over to pick him up, “I’m sure one of your friends would love to play with you for a little bit.” 

Grogu smiles and giggles, and Din is appreciative that the kid is so understanding. Din slips his helmet back on, and Grogu reaches up, giving the side a good pat. Din is a lucky guy. 

They make their way out of the garden, the pathway becoming darker with the setting sun, but there Luke is, their string leading right to him. Just like he said he would be, Luke is seated on the ground, legs crossed, breaths even and calm. He must have started meditating when Grogu and Din took the extra time together. 

“Hey,” Din says, and Luke turns. 

“Did he tell you about the flowers we’re planting?” Luke asks, standing up to meet them.

“Yeah, but I didn’t catch any of the names.” 

“The one we’re most excited about is the Butterfly Tail, it’s supposed to attract the native butterflies in this area. It’ll be nice to help out the ecosystem a bit,” Luke tells him, and Grogu coos. 

“Yeah, that would be nice.” 

Luke takes Din’s free hand, and they walk down the rest of the pathway together. When they reach the clearing, all the students have collected in the center, playing a game. They all turn, sensing the group’s presence. 

“Grogu! Come play with us!” The human boy from earlier yells, and Din sets him down so he can waddle over to them. 

“It’s nice that the kids include Grogu, I think it’s nice for him to play with people closer in age to him,” Din says, watching as the kids make room for him in the circle. 

“They’re all great kids, I know Ben is excited when he can join the school,” Luke responds, and Din pulls him so they can continue walking. 

Luke quickly falls into step with Din, as Din takes them back to the balcony where they had their first kiss. It’s the perfect view for the sunset, and when they get there, Luke’s hair turns golden in the setting sun, and his eyes become oceans that Din would be willing to drown in. Din stands behind Luke so he can wrap his arms around his waist. Luke hums at the contact. 

“Is everything alright?” Luke asks. 

Din nods, “Yeah...I just, I remembered something about my childhood...about the strings.” 

Luke turns around in his arms, “What is it?” 

Din takes a moment before responding, thinking about the last he saw his parents alive and happy. It was a couple of days before the attack, they were laughing and dancing around the kitchen, while his mother cooked dinner. Din sat at the table, in awe of how in love they looked, their golden string connecting them together, growing and shrinking as his father spun his mother around and dipped her. He remembers now, staring down at his own hands, wondering when his string was going to show up. 

“My...my parents had a connecting string,” Din whispers, voice cracking in the middle of his sentence, and Luke reaches his hands up to place on both sides of Din’s helmet. 

Luke doesn’t say anything, Din doesn't need him too, listening ears are all he needs. Luke lets Din find the right words to move forward. 

“I...must have repressed the memory...after the attack. They were the only people who I remember ever seeing with a connecting string, so I must have...shoved it away once..once they died. When the Mandalorian took me with them, I saw two bodies..with a string the color of coal, and...I realized on my way back here, that it was them, it was my parents.” 

Tears roll down Din’s cheeks, and Din is grateful for his helmet, but he cannot hide the sobs that make their way out of his throat. Luke wraps his arms around Din’s neck, and pulls him down close to him. He whispers soft words of comfort, telling Din that he’s here, and it’ll be okay. Din doesn’t need Luke to say anything, his presence is healing enough. Din lets himself breakdown, in the arms of the man that he loves... _Oh._

That’s a new revelation. Not that Din didn’t feel it before, he guesses that’s what he’s been feeling for a long time now, but now Din has named it and Din takes a couple of deep breathes, pulling Luke closer to him. 

“ _Cyar'ika,”_ Din whispers, voice thick with emotion, because it’s the only word that Din can say right now that are not the three little words that he is so afraid of. 

“What?” Luke asks, and Din realizes that he’s never called Luke that before. Din leans away from Luke, just enough so he can stare into the only pair of eyes that have given him comfort before. 

“Beloved.” Din pushes the hair out of Luke’s eyes, and Luke gives him a smile so bright, that Din swears that there’s a star somewhere that just went out in order for the Force to power a smile that powerful, that beautiful.

“ _Cyar'ika,”_ Luke tries in his mouth, and Din laughs, full of relief that this is the person the Force has decided to tie him to for the rest of his life. 

“You’ll get it one day,” 

One day...a future...Din likes the sound of a future with Luke. A life with Luke with kids and Grogu, breakfasts and dinners, mornings and evenings, everything in between now and forever. In the same breath that Din knew he loves Luke, he knows he’s gonna ask him to marry him too. 

But not now. Now, Din lets Luke hold him as each star in the sky makes an appearance above them, trying to beat out the moonlight to take their place in Luke’s eyes, and Din cannot blame them for the competition. He too, would fight battles to be able to stare into Luke's eyes.

* * *

“Luke!” Din yells, a part of his heart breaking as he watches Luke walk away from him, from the temple, from them.

Luke stops, the rain already soaking him to the core, and Din watches as he shivers. They’re standing in the rain, as it’s pouring down on them relentlessly. It’s the middle of the night, and Luke avoids looking at their string, and Din is frustrated, that for the first time, Luke won’t acknowledge their connection. Luke stands away from Din, face half turned away, not quite embarrassed, but almost there. 

“Luke...think for a moment,” Din says, reaching out to him, and Luke pulls away. An exasperated sigh rips out from Din, frustrated at his partner. 

“I have to go, I have to do this, this is what I signed up for all those years ago, Din, you know this.” Luke’s voice is sharp, and Din shakes his head. 

“So you’re just gonna vanish to follow rumors that there’s another Sith on the loose? With no substance to those rumors? Without telling me, telling your students, because some government demands it of you?” Din snaps, and he reaches out again, this time successfully wrapping a gloved hand around Luke’s wrist. Luke still won’t meet Din’s visor. 

“I have a responsibility, Din, I’m the last Jedi that anyone knows about, truly. I can’t sit idly by and hope that they don’t wreak havoc like the last ones did, and I-,” Luke cuts himself off, tears rolling down his face. A crack of thunder rolls amongst the sky, and Din’s heart drops. 

“And what? It’s fair for the New Republic to send you, one lone man, to fight a battle just because you followed in the path of your masters and your father? Because you have powers that you didn’t even ask for? That’s fair? That's not a responsibility, Luke, that’s a fucking death sentence. You can’t drop everything to fight these battles, you’ll burn out. You have a life here, you have people here, Luke. You have students that need to be taught, you have Han, Leia, and Ben, you have Grogu...you have me.”

Din knows his voice is colder than he means it to be, but he’s so angry. Angry at the New Republic for ignoring Luke, and only asking for him when they need the Jedi, not Luke. They use the fact that Luke followed down the path of the Jedi before, plucking at Luke’s strings like he’s a puppet, almost knowing that Luke feels responsible for each and every mistake of the Jedi. Din has no appreciation for Luke’s father, he’s the man who haunts Luke’s nightmares and who had cut off his hand, but Luke cannot carry the weight of his actions on his shoulders every time the New Republic demands _The_ Jedi, to make up for the flaws of the ones who came before him. The pairing lightning flashes across the sky, showing how broken Luke looks, and Din’s heart aches. 

Din knows Luke holds promises like dying stars, like a part of him will die if he doesn’t carry out the responsibilities he puts on himself. He’s made so many promises to so many people in his past, but Din wants Luke to understand that he does not have to be at the beck and call of a government who only uses him as a symbol, a way to get things done when it’s easier than sending their own people into a fight. Luke has told Din about what the Jedi had turned into by the end of the Clone Wars, more a military operation then what they were meant to be, peacekeepers and protectors. 

“Din...” Luke breathes out, and Din pulls him close, wrapping his arms around Luke’s waist, holding him there. 

“I love you.” 

Thunder booms. Din says it before he can think otherwise, but he doesn’t want to take it back. Luke gasps. Luke reaches up to wrap his arms around Din’s shoulders. Din lets himself think about it for a moment, how much he loves Luke, what Luke has done for him, and everything he would do for Luke. He would move heaven and hell to make sure Luke was safe, and Din knows Luke wouldn’t hesitate to do the same for him. Another flash of lightning shoots across the sky, and Din sees Luke’s beautiful blue eyes staring at him. 

“Stay...let us figure this out together...” Din whispers, leaning forward to touch their foreheads together. 

“I love you too,” Luke says, and the tension leaves Din’s body, the rain bouncing off his armor, “I’ll stay...I’ll figure something out but, I’ll stay.” 

There’s a beat between the pair, listening to the rain fall around them, thunder rolls and lightning cracks, and the air still sticky with humidity. Holding Luke, having him choose to stay against the promises he’s made to other people for Din, so they can figure it out together and showing Luke that he’s not alone in the world, that he has people in his corner, makes Din’s heart race. His mind drifts back to the day Din told Luke about his parents, and he realizes that the moment is now. 

“What is it, there’s something else,” Luke asks, and Din sighs, not out of frustration but out of anxiety. What if he says no?

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while...and I know it might be too soon, but,” Din starts, staring into Luke’s eyes, “Marry me, Luke?” 

“Yes,” Din lets out a strangled laugh, one that catches in his throat. 

Din doesn’t need anything else, it’s perfect, it’s them, confessions made in the middle of the night. 

“We could get married right here, right now, if you want...Mandalorians, we don’t need a ceremony or anything, just a phrase, but I’ll follow you, Luke, whatever you want, I’m there every step of the way,” 

Din watches as Luke considers this, and holds his breath. Din ran away for so long, that now that he’s here, here in this moment, he can’t imagine ever running again. Part of him wishes he had realized it all sooner, that the string was leading him to a person, but...it might have been different then. Luke might have been different and Din would have been different too. Din thanks the Force for finding the right time, the perfect moment, to bring him and Luke together, just when they needed the other the most. Din knows this might be the best way to honor his parents, by following in their footsteps, and finding the person at the end of his string, and loving them with no conditions involved. 

Luke nods, and Din loses all the air in his lungs. They’re doing this, they’re getting married. The rain is still pouring, and he is completely overwhelmed by the man who stands in front of him. If Luke was the stars in the sky, then Din was the velvet blackness that held them together. 

“Just say what I say the best you can, I know your Mando’a is still rough,” Din teases, and he can tell that Luke is too caught up in this moment to care about the taunt, “ _Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome, mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde._ ” 

“ _Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome, mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde._ ” Luke butchers every word, but Din understands it enough, letting out a gentle laugh. 

With only the rain as their witness, Din reaches up, and quickly pulls off his helmet. Letting it drop to the ground, he stares into Luke’s eyes, listening as a soft gasp escapes his mouth. He thinks back to all the times he ignored Luke’s eyes, pushing them out of his thoughts, and how different it all was now, wanting to drown in them. Din feels naked, watching as Luke’s eyes dart around his face, taking in every little detail, lingering on the mustache, and Din’s lips. He tries to control his face, trying not to look too uncomfortable, because in truth he isn’t. The rain seeps into his hair, running down his face, and Din feels alive. He’s in the arms of his _husband, they’re husbands now._ Din’s head swirls with the implications of what comes next. 

Reaching up, string still connected, after all this time, all these years, even with Din running away and wanting to fight gods, Luke places a hand on Din’s cheek. Din lets his eyes flutter shut, and he wonders if Luke knows that this is the first time he’s been touched like this, with such compassion and care from another person. They found each other, all by themselves. They were a family now, and Din can’t wait to wrap Grogu and Luke up in his arms and call them his family, his home. 

Din feels Luke push himself up, their lips meeting in the middle, and a strangled gasp escapes Din’s throat. The kiss is simple, with Din’s hands finding their way to Luke’s soaking hair. It feels like magic, like everything is exactly how it’s supposed to be, with no exceptions to the rules, just the two of them, right now, in this moment. 

“ _Cyar'ika,_ ” Din mumbles against Luke’s mouth, and he wouldn’t give any of this up for the world. 

Din thanks the Force for this, for Luke, for Grogu, his parents and showing him the string all these years. Din doesn’t have to run away anymore, or convince himself that there is no place for him to belong. Neither of them have to fight anymore, and Din doesn’t have to be alone anymore. 

Din finally belongs.

* * *

Din Djarin wakes up to the sun in his eyes. He blinks them open, adjusting to the daybreak. He listens to the sounds around him, the birds chirping from outside, the rustle of the trees, and the smell of fresh flowers floating in from the garden down below. He glances over, and sees his husband, calmly sleeping next to him, sprawling out on his stomach like a starfish. Din smiles to himself, reaching up and brushing the hair out of Luke’s eyes. 

He thinks about the road that led him here, looking down to the string that connects them. He’s happy. That’s all, no if’s, ands, buts. Plain and simple. It might have been a long road but it led him directly to where he needed to be, showed him what the world is like, and showed him what the world could be. Despite everything, all the hell he’s gone through, he has his family, and for that he’s grateful. 

Luke shifts and opens his eyes, “Hey there, handsome.” 

Din’s heart still soars, even after all this time. 

“Hey there, farmboy.” 

Luke grins, moving his elbows underneath him, so he can push himself up. Leaning over, he places a gentle kiss on Din’s lips. Before he can move away, Din’s hand captures the back of his head, tangling his fingers in Luke’s hair, pulling him back in for more. Luke hums when their lips connect again, and Din truly believes he would still fight a god if it meant keeping this moment for himself forever. 

Luke pulls away, this time, putting a finger on Din’s lips. Din smiles in confusion, obviously waiting for whatever Luke has noticed that he hasn’t. Luke shifts away, and sits up in bed. 

“One second.” He says to Din, before calling, “Finn, you two can come in!”

Immediately, the door to their bedroom bursts open, and Finn comes racing in with Grogu in his arms, giggling and shrieking. Jumping on the bed, they worm their way in between their fathers, the best spot in the whole galaxy according to them. 

“Good morning,” Din laughs, wrapping an arm around the boys. 

“ _Buir_ , Dad! I had a dream last night about someone! They had brown eyes, and brown hair, and it was curly, and they flew in a ship! And they had a really nice smile, do you think they could be my soulmate?” Finn asks, looking up between his parents. 

Luke looks up to meet Din’s eyes, the same eyes that he saw in his dreams all those years ago. His hair is still made of sunshine, even if there was a bit of gray coming in at the edges. They smile at each other, and Din glances out the window to watch Finn and Grogu’s strings pull and tighten. He won’t let them run away from their strings, not the way he did. 

“Yeah, kid, it could be.” Din says, and Finn sits up to bump their foreheads together, “We’ll go find them one day,” 

As Finn captures Luke in a very important conversation about what color lightsaber Luke thinks he will have, Din glances down at Grogu, who moves to find a place in Din’s arms. 

This moment is all Din could have ever asked for, a place to belong. 

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr [here!](https://skywalker-swift.tumblr.com/) (chamberofswift)! My ask box is always open for questions about my stories, any fic ideas, and all the dinluke headcanons. Thank you for reading, I appreciate you :D


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